Chicago Fire Go Down Early, Lose 4-2 to Orlando City SC

Facundo Torres owns the Chicago Fire.

Orlando City SC's No. 10 ten has now scored in four consecutive matches against Chicago after scoring two gorgeous goals in his side’s 4-2 win over the Fire on Saturday in Florida, snapping a five-match winless streak in the process.

Torres started the scoring early and his side didn’t waver throughout the contest despite Chicago’s resilience in the second half as they tried to get themselves back in the match after trailing 3-0 at halftime.

For the second consecutive match against Chicago, Torres opened the scoring in the fourth minute and it was a thing of beauty. Torres took on Jonathan Dean on the right side and cut to his left before unleashing a rocket off his left foot that ripped the back of Chicago’s net as the hosts took the early 1-0 lead.

Things got far worse for the Fire before halftime, which included Allan Arigoni making the worst mistake of his Chicago Fire career. Arigoni needlessly pulled down Orlando’s Iván Angulo in Chicago’s penalty area, making it easy for the referee to award the hosts a penalty kick. Luis Murriel stepped up to the spot and had no problem doubling Orlando’s lead in the 20th minute.

Brian Gutiérrez managed a shot off the post but Orlando followed that up by making it a 3-0 match in the 29th minute. Iván Angulo tapped in a rebound right in front of Chicago’s goal after some chaos in front of the net, giving the Fire a heck of a hole to climb out of in Orlando.

The tide slightly turned in the Fire’s favor after halftime.

Maren Haile-Selassie won his side a penalty kick in the 51st minute and had no problem scoring from the spot to make it 3-1 with plenty of time remaining.

But Facundo Torres wouldn’t allow the Fire to get comfortable and he secured his brace in the 60th minute with a strike that was almost better than his first goal of the evening. Torres played the ball at the top of the penalty area, took a touch, and hit another fabulous strike to make it 4-1 Orlando.

Hugo Cuypers managed to tap in a consolation goal in the 69th minute but that wasn’t enough for the Fire, who are now without a win in their last seven against Orlando.

Match Observations

Facundo Torres scored an ugly goal in the fourth minute of the last matchup between these two sides in Chicago but he scored a beauty in the fourth minute to give his side the 1-0 lead in Florida. Torres had the ball on the right side of Chicago’s penalty area and took Jonathan Dean on one-on-one. Torres took a step to his left and ripped a left-footed missile that ripped the back of Chicago’s net and sent the home crowd into a frenzy. Dean gave Torres an inch and Orlando’s No. 10 scored his fourth consecutive match against Chicago.

Chicago finally got their first chance on goal in the 11th minute and it was Hugo Cuypers who forced Mason Stajduhar into making a save. Brian Gutiérrez played a nice entry pass to Cuypers on the left and Chicago’s No. 9 took a few dribbles before hitting a decent shot that was saved by Stajduhar. The rebound fell to Maren Haile-Selassie but his effort skied the net as Stajduhar was bearing down on the Chicago winger. It wasn’t a great shot from Cuypers but he did enough to create the rebound opportunity for Haile-Selassie.

Allan Arigoni made his biggest mistake in a Chicago Fire jersey in the 19th minute. Arigoni pulled down Orlando’s Iván Angulo from his left shoulder as the attacker entered Chicago’s penalty area and the referee immediately pointed to the penalty spot. Arigoni had Arnaud Souquet to his right and it’s inexplicable that Arigoni pulled down Angulo when he had coverage from a teammate. Naturally, Luis Murriel dispatched the shot from the spot and Orlando had a 2-0 lead in the 20th minute.

Jonathan Dean found Brian Gutiérrez in a little bit of space in the 24th minute and it was enough for Gutiérrez to rip a right-footed effort off the post, inches away from cutting Orlando’s lead in half.

The Fire’s defending only got worse and they conceded again in the 29th minute after they couldn’t get the ball out of their own penalty area. Dagur Dan Thorhallsson made a run down the right side into Chicago’s penalty area and hit a cross into the middle of the box. Chris Brady was forced into a sprawling save after Duncan McGuire, who’s somehow still on Orlando City, deflected the cross on goal but the rebound fell to an unmarked Iván Angulo, who had no problem tapping in the loose ball to make it a 3-0 match. There’s no excuse for Angulo to be that open on the rebound and it only looked worse as no Fire defenders appeared to even make an attempt at the loose ball.

Chicago had a chance in the 42nd minute but Hugo Cuypers wasn’t able to beat Mason Stajduhar. Arnaud Souquet’s cross from the right side was half-cleared to Jonathan Dean on the left side. Dean hit the ball back in Orlando’s penalty area and Brian Gutiérrez headed the cross over to Hugo Cuypers on his right. Cuypers hit a header that went right at the face of Stajduhar and bounced away from danger. If Cuypers went to either side of Stajduhar with his header, Chicago would’ve scored. He didn’t and the three-goal margin remained.

Chicago outshot Orlando eight-three overall and had four shots on target to only three for the side up 3-0 at halftime.

Orlando gifted the Fire a lifeline in the 51st minute. Rodrigo Schlegel went to ground in Orlando’s penalty area just as Maren Haile-Selassie hit a cross back towards the center of the box. Schlegel’s right arm hit the ball and the referee immediately pointed to the spot for a Fire penalty kick. Haile-Selassie hit a perfect PK to the goalkeeper’s left and cut Orlando’s lead to 3-1 in the 53rd minute.

Facundo Torres owns the Chicago Fire. It’s true. His first goal of the evening was a lovely one but his 60th-minute finish reminded everyone that he truly has Chicago’s number. Thorhallson did well to bring the ball from the wide part of the pitch to the penalty area with Torres at the edge of Chicago’s box. Torres took a touch and, as no defenders took away his space, unleashed another gorgeous strike to make it 4-1 Orlando with 30 minutes of regular time remaining.

Hugo Cuypers scored his fourth goal in as many matches in the 69th minute to give the match its final 4-2 scoreline. Fabian Herbers hit a lovely cross into Orlando’s penalty area that Robin Jansson made a complete mess of. The ball fell perfectly to Cuypers after Jansson’s mistake and Chicago’s No. 9 had no problem scoring his seventh goal of the MLS season. For comparison’s sake, Maren Haile-Selassie led the 2023 Chicago Fire with only six goals scored. Cuypers has already eclipsed that.

Gastón Giménez had a fabulous chance to make it a one-goal margin in the 80th minute but Mason Stajduhar was there to make a great save to his left. Giménez hit a perfect left-footed strike off the bounce just outside of Orlando’s penalty area but Stajduhar moved well to his left and parried the shot away from danger. If Giménez had scored, it would’ve been an incredibly tense finish at INTER & CO Stadium.

Mason Stajduhar made another massive save in the 85th minute to maintain the two-goal margin. Gastón Giménez played a perfect feed over the top of Orlando’s defenders that Georgios Koutsias met in the air. Koutsias’ effort was goal-bound before Stajduhar fully extended himself to deny the goal-scoring opportunity right in front of Koutsias.

Chicago outshot Orlando 19-7 overall and had 13 on-target efforts to only 5 for the hosts.

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